Guest

We spend our lives searching for our destiny, while the universe conspires to help us achieve it. At least, this is the way of the world in Paulo Coelho’s internationally bestselling book The Alchemist. Such a reminder is artfully depicted on the wall of an enchanting cafe which shares its namesake with the very book it draws decorative inspiration from. …

The sharp ringing of a morning alarm blares through the soothing darkness. Groaning in sleep-deprivation, I blindly throw one arm out to hit snooze.“15 more minutes…” I mumble out loud, falling back into a warm cocoon of deliciously lush blankets. …

There’s few things that make us want to break out our passport and hop on the next flight overseas than hearing about a good coffee shop. Today, guest contributor Andy Cenci returns with his top coffee picks for Warsaw, Poland.…

There are few things we enjoy more than traveling. Drinking coffee is one of them. Visiting world-class coffee shops in one of the most exciting cities in the world? That might take the cake. Today we’re living vicariously through guest-contributor Andy Cenci’s recent Tokyo café-crawl. These are Cenci’s top three Tokyo coffee shops you shouldn’t miss:…

The main area in the hill town of Ubud, Bali, has no more than 2 or 3 large roads. Strangely most tourists bound themselves here. A turn to the narrow streets off the main roads quickly escapes the bustle. It’s on such a quiet pathway that I find something novel—a cafe devoted to one coffee variety from one village.

The shop name, Juria House, takes after the variety. Mind you, the place is small. It only fits a row of sofas and low chairs. The owner, a Japanese transplant named Ryuichi Hirakawa, operates the space almost like his living room. He’d welcome you as you take your shoes off, sit down, and hear the story behind the coffee.

Juria House’s customer space, taking up 2/3 of the shop.

Juria derives from Typica seeds that a Flores native brought home from Sulawesi in 1950. The first trees still thrive today in Colol village, East Manggarai regency. Growing untrimmed to 4 or 5 m, they require a climb during harvest. …

For years, I bemoaned the fact that Little Rock, Arkansas did not have a micro-roastery I was excited to visit. It seemed Onyx was the only craft coffee game in Arkansas. On a recent trip to Arkansas, however, a dear friend kindly informed me that there was a new roaster in Little Rock that I needed to check out: Mylo Coffee Co.

Greenville, South Carolina might have America’s prettiest café. Nestled on the ground floor of a Bank of America just off of the aptly-named Coffee Street stands Methodical Coffee, a humble yet highly sophisticated cafe that offers a minimalistic menu with exceptional service and quality….

If someone walked into your kitchen right now, how clean would it be on a scale of one to ten? As of this writing, my own kitchen is a six. A couple hours ago it was a four and before I go to bed I’ll try to get it to an eight. So it gets messy sometimes, but if you asked me about it I would be comfortable describing my kitchen generally as “clean” or even “really clean.”

I think the fluctuating cleanliness of my kitchen serves as an apt metaphor for the experience of visiting a far-away coffee shop. There are plenty of shops that are good, or even really good, on the balance that still can’t lay a claim to consistency. So, if you’re visiting a new shop (even one that is highly recommended by locals) there is a chance you’ll be less than impressed with your one-off visit. That’s why there is something special about Caffe Streets,…

It seems like roasteries are popping up all across the country lately and Charleston, S.C. is no exception. Since our review of Black Tap Coffee back in 2013, this beautiful and quality-driven coffee shop has taken on its own roasting operations, further extending their commitment to superior coffee and and to Charleston’s community. When we last visited Black Tap, they were skillfully serving up Counter Culture coffee and offering a variety of pastries from Wild Flour, a local bakery. Now, almost two years later, they’re still serving Wild Flour’s baked goods (though they’ve added a few new items like a banana nutella turnover, a ham and cheese turnover, and a mini quiche) and still preparing good, handcrafted coffee products for all of their customers in a clean, modern space, but they’re no longer a Counter Culture account; instead, they roast their own beans. We caught up with Ross Jett, co-owner of Black Tap Coffee, to ask him a few questions about this big change and get some pointers for any aspiring shop-turned-roaster.

Since we last talked, you all have started to roast your own beans. What prompted the transition? What kind of hurdles did you have to leap?

The move from being a Counter Culture account to roasting our own coffee came partly out of necessity and partly out of demand. As the owner of a growing business and the head of a dedicated, loyal staff, its my responsibility to enable my best employees to grow with the business. Tripp Gandy, who is now our roaster and green buyer, was one such employee. I recognized in him one of the best …